Will Brownsberger — State Senator, Democrat, 2d Suffolk and Middlesex District

Today I was sworn in as state senator in the Senate Chamber. The Senate President presided and the Governor administered the oath of office. After the ceremony, I was permitted to make some brief remarks.

A couple of constituents asked after the January 10 special election whether it was really necessary to hold the election given that, after my December 13 primary win, my name was the only one on the ballot. I think the answer to that question is yes.

New regulations have been introduced for financial institutions across the country that will forever change the way they can provide overdraft protection to their customers. Overdraft protection has for years been automatically included in checking accounts at most all major banks across the country. When an account holder withdrew more from their account than they [...]

State Treasurer Steve Grossman is making the annual push to distribute funds abandoned in financial institutions. You can check on the web to see whether the Treasurer has custody of funds in your name.

I’ve recently received a number of emails like the one appearing below urging me to contact local hospitals to push them to adopt infection control protocols. If anyone wants to take the lead in thinking through how it would be effective to advance this issue in Massachusetts, I’d be delighted to hear from them.

I’ve had conversations with several friends in the Benton library area in Belmont who have sought my advice about how to interact with the town as the town decides what to do with the property.

I’ve heard from many of you who have expressed concern for the loss of our Charlesbank bookstore in Belmont Centre. I had a long conversation today with the COO of Barnes and Noble (the chain that owns Charlesbank) and he indicated that there was nothing the community could say to him that would change his decision. Anyone want to start a bookstore in Belmont?

The Registrar has come up with a free electronic reminder service to which you can now subscribe if you wish.

As part of Governor Deval Patrick’s reform plan to make transportation agencies more accountable to commuters, the Registry of Motor Vehicles is reinstating courtesy notices for driver’s license and MA ID renewals that were discontinued last December.

I’ve been getting a lot of emails that read:

“Please do not repeal or delay the implementation of Question 3, the
ballot question that passed 56% to 44% in 12 of 14 counties and in 290 cities and towns.

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I don’t generally post replies to comments  –   I express my views through my main blog posts.  But I appreciate and personally read all of the comments.  Let me know if you would like a direct response from me, and I will respond publicly or privately as you prefer.

You may have read the recent coverage about the Insurance Commissioner’s plan to expand competition. If you are interested in this issue, you may wish to see all the following article: http://www.spcpub.com/article.cfm?id=982.